Hi pallaeon, welcome aboard!
Don't run Vista myself but it sounds like that's not the problem. How far from home base are you when "exit patrol"? If you're more than 25km from a friendly port all sorts of weird things might happen. If you use the "Warp back to base function" from mid-ocean, you will frequently find yourself on the sea-floor. Don't know how you managed to get to west Africa in three days, wish I could do that! In SH3 Commander you can select your starting month/year, along with many other options. Try tinkering with the menu's until you find a set-up you can live with.
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